From time to time I will gather some new gems I have discovered or experienced in a dedicated monthly overview.

As it’s currently October when writing it, it is more than fair to start from this month. But I will allow myself to go a bit backward and in this occasion bring in some things from the previous months, too. So without further ado, let’s get to it!

To spend more time outside, I decided that a nice and practical picnic basket would help. That decision was made in a store when it caught my eye, without any previous planning. But I am glad we brought it home, because it has given us lovely outdoorsy moments. Like breakfast in a small fishing boat on a foggy morning lake and an afternoon barbeque at a near-home camping site. I love that it has a classy look, comes with cutlery, and has enough storage for two people. No more putting picnic foods in an odd-looking grocery bag.

The one we have is out-of-stock, but I managed to find some similar baskets:

• Visit Amazon: Picnic Basket for 2
• Visit Wayfair: Seaside 9 Piece Newport Wicker Picnic Basket Set

Another find I would like to bring out is a phenomenal help when traveling long distances – Timeshifter app. I discovered it long enough time before our Hawaii trip, which needed us to take three flights to travel 13 time zones backward. And fortunately, this app has a free trial period, which covers your first trip back-and-forth, to test it both ways!

After downloading Timeshifter app and entering your flight details, selecting preferences regarding caffeine and melatonin, it will create a custom action plan for you. It will begin a couple of days before departure, to help adjust your body in advance. It will tell you when to consume and avoid caffeine and sunlight, when to go to sleep and for how long, when you should take a nap etc.

What I found was that even though I wasn’t able to follow the instructions fully (wasn’t really able to take a nap during a Friday office day), and considering how naturally tiring 30-40 hours of traveling can be, I only encountered jet lag in a way that when we arrived and took an overnight sleep, the next day we took a mid-day nap for a couple of hours. But otherwise, I felt great and didn’t think the timezone transition will go that smoothly! Highly recommend giving it a try when you have a longer traveling planned ahead.

To finish this post off on an especially practical note, I want to share something I use every day – an acrylic wall planner. I had seen someone having it in a home office and having used digital calendars, notebooks, post-its, etc, I saw a simple solution to everyday planning.

What I like about this acrylic planner is that you can customize it according to your needs, and with glass markers, you can write and erase information and can use the same planner again and again. It can be attached to a wall on just placed on a desk.

It was a struggle to find one that would have the weeks starting with Monday, so I did have to choose a Sun-Sat planner, but I have realized that is no big deal. In many cases, you can make a custom heading for the planner and choose from a lot of different sizes, to meet your needs and design preferences.

The one I have is not available on Etsy anymore, but I have linked some similar items from Amazon.

See similar calendars in my Amazon List HERE.